Shut, My Eyes Are
by Quiz King
Summary: Due to the fire of an angry bird, Cloud gets into a bit of trouble; the consequence- time travel. potential SLASH. timetravel.
1. In Which This is the Prologue

**FFVII AU Fic**

**Title:** Shut, My Eyes Are

**Genre:** Adventure, Romance, maybe a bit of Angst and Humour?

**Warning(s):** Potential Threesome (though probably not), The Man-Puppy Zack, Time Travel,Slash (boy love/yaoi/whatever you wanna call it)

**Summary: **Due to the fire of an angry bird, Cloud gets into a bit of trouble; the consequence- time travel.

* * *

"Oh shit! Fuck! Shit shit shit! What the fucking shit, shit!" Swerving on Fenrir, Cloud Strife hit the gas once more, hoping above all else that it would be enough to outrun the giant _angry_ bird behind him. "C'mon, _c'mon_!"

No, scratch that, it wasn't a bird. No, not at all. A bird wouldn't be breathing fire and melting rock and a bird certainly wouldn't be the size of a _giant freaking truck_! It was just Cloud's luck to have run into an angry phoenix. Just his luck indeed. In fact, Cloud should have expected it, with the way his life was going and had been in the past! But no, he had been stupid and decided to take a short cut for a delivery and lo and behold, here he was, running for his life on Fenrir once more!

No. This thing wasn't a bird; it was a monster—_swerve left, duck! Keep going, Keep going_!—A very angry monster that probably wouldn't forgive him for all of eternity (though all he'd done was encroach on its territory!). More importantly though, _it was a phoenix_.

Cloud could only ever recall seeing one phoenix ever, and that had been way back, when the planet was near destruction and WEAPONs were coming out of nowhere and _Sephiroth_. That time, however, the giant flaming bird had simply taken off and left some phoenix down for the party to take. It was nothing like now; hot fire, screeches that could deafen children, molten rock and that putrid smell of burning.

Cloud knew if he got caught now, he would literally be an unnoticed scorch mark in the deserts outside of Edge, along with the puddle of melted metal Fenrir and First Tsurugi would be left as.

Actually, he wasn't so sure about his sword; the thing was made out of spare WEAPON bits, after all. Someone would probably find and sell it for way less than it was worth.

As Cloud swung his bike around a large boulder, he felt it stutter, and cursing almost silently under his breath, Cloud noticed the gas gauge on his bike running on empty and he _cursed cursed cursed_—

It was over now, that he knew for sure. His bike would give out any minute now; he'd be left to face the flaming bird and as much as Cloud knew he could probably take it—well, there was something completely unappealing about facing something that could melt his face off with a breath.

Alas, it was inevitable. Cloud was forced to launch himself from his bike, First Tsurugi in one hand and his trusty cure materia in the other. Slotting the materia in his hand into his blade, he prepared for the worst battle he had recently had the honour of facing.

Of course, he didn't expect for the thing to _fucking breathe fire right away god fucking damn it_—and he swore the whole of Gaia was laughing at him as he leapt away, or tried to.

He hadn't taken into account that his boots, as comfortable and convenient as they were, weren't fire proof at all, and as he tried to leap away he found that he couldn't; his boots. They were melted into the hard rock covered ground, and his feet! It was like he'd dipped his feet into burning coal. His pants quickly caught fire too, and as much as Cloud had saved the world and thrice defeated Sephiroth and multiple other, stronger enemies; well, he was defeated. And it was his own boots to cause his demise!

Cloud cringed when the bird let out a deafening shriek once more, and Cloud tried, _tried_ to defend himself as the bird dived right towards him, gaping beak wide open and more terrifyingly, full of teeth as well. Of course, he didn't have time to feel the thing disembowel him—as everything had gone dark as soon as the phoenix had touched him.

* * *

Now if there was one feeling Cloud recognized, it was the feeling of being in the lifestream. He felt weightless—free of his blasted emotions and any physical pain that had been ailing him. He was unconvinced that opening his eyes would do him any good, so he stayed put for approximately three seconds before he was sat on.

Sputtering, Cloud was suddenly out of breath and his eyes had no choice but to fly open, only to be greeted with the sight of his only SOLDIER friend sitting on him, as if it were an everyday occurrence! Why, if Cloud hadn't felt so startled, he would have acted properly and shoved the larger man off him, but as it were, he was still recovering from remembering the phoenix attack. "Zack, gerroff!"

"Nah buddy, I don't think I will..." That stupid grin that Cloud _always missed always longed for_ passed over one Zack Fair's face—until, that is, a voice from behind him spoke up.

"Zack, wasn't it you who just a few minutes ago insisted that we had to be serious about this?" Zack, of course, made a face and turned to look at his lover. A moment passed in silence before the former SOLDIER sighed and got off of Cloud, helping the blond to his feet in the process.

"Yeah yeah..."

Cloud gave the two a happy, albeit curious, look. It wasn't every day one saw their dead friends, after all. In fact, Cloud was sure if he wasn't in so much shock he'd probably be crying or something equally as gross. Again, as it were, he was still coming to terms with what had previously transpired. Aerith, being the beautiful, wonderful woman that she was, clapped her hands together lightly and stood as well, striding over to them so they could stand together.

"Now Cloud, you know what happens from here, don't you?"

"I get sent back to the world of the living, yeah. Something about me not belonging?" His companions both made a face that said they were so _sorry it wasn't up to them please forgive forgive forgive_—and there was guilt and sadness all around. For a moment, it was perfectly silent, perfectly still.

"That would be the case...but you're body was destroyed. Geez Spike, what the heck did you get into this time...?" the words were spoken lightly, but the question held, and Cloud could only shrug. In all honesty, he had no idea what had happened.

"So if my body is gone..."

"The planet wants to send your spirit back in time."

"What."

It was Zack who spoke next, "Sorry Cloud... we tried to help out, but the best we could do was convince to send along a guide as well. Looks like Gaia's not ready to give up her ultimate protector yet."

Frowning, Cloud couldn't think. His mind felt sluggish and halting, and really, what could he do? Throw a fit? Demand entrance into the lifestream? No, he couldn't very well do either. He would need to adapt as much as he possibly could in this situation. "A guide?"

Aerith smiled politely, nodding in confirmation to what he had heard. "Zack will be going with you."

"Oh..."

"Aw, c'mon man! Don't sound so disappointed! I'm awesome!" The look on Zack's face warranted a push from Aerith and a small smile from Cloud.

"It's not that I'm disappointed... but won't there be two of you? That's a bit much for anyone to handle."

"Nah, you'll see! Aerith, looks like time's almost up!"

To Cloud, Aerith looked sad but also wise and stunning and so ready to say goodbye. It almost hurt Cloud to see her like that, but he understood. Zack understood too.

And now, it was time.

With a kiss on both their cheeks and hugs all around, Zack and Cloud prepared themselves as best they could; though that wasn't much. They had no idea what to expect or where they'd end up. Well actually, maybe Zack knew, but Cloud didn't, so he was completely unprepared for the pain.

It felt like the lifestream was tearing him apart every which way and he couldn't make a sound because he was nothing; he was everything. He felt the void as it filled him up and tore at his mind and screamed directly into his ears. He felt himself materialise cell by cell, molecule by molecule. It was like those hellish four years all over again, being soaked in mako, having needles driven into every vein he had, hell, his mind felt like it had when Zack had abandoned him on the cliff side so long ago.

And then he was once again nothing. There was no pain; just the empty feeling of misplacement and confusion. Memories, not his own but probably his all at the same time—they tangled together, memories of the future and of his past, he suddenly knew every detail of any forgotten past that he'd lost and suddenly he was Cloud Strife: wimpy SOLDIER trainee with hidden strengths and a love for books he had long forgotten about. Cloud Strife: the savior of the planet and thrice destroyer of the strongest man known to mankind.

But he was also nothing, and the darkness claimed him like it had before.


	2. In Which the First is Also the Second

**FFVII AU Fic**

**Title:** Shut, My Eyes Are

**Genre:** Adventure, Romance, maybe a bit of Angst and Humour?

**Warning(s):** Potential Threesome (though probably not), The Man-Puppy Zack, Time Travel,Slash (boy love/yaoi/whatever you wanna call it)

**A/N: **_Hey guys! Chapter two is here and ready for your inspection! I hope you all enjoy it, and I promise a bit of action is going to happen next chapter, so no worries! Hehe... also, feel free to throw ideas at me! You never know, ideas in your reviews could be used in future chapters(though loosely)!_

_Did I mention that I don't own FFVII?_

* * *

When Cloud woke up that morning, it was to the blaring alarm that blasted through ShinRa's speakers (conveniently located only in the trainee quarters). How he knew it was ShinRa's, well, he would never know... or perhaps he would. After he sorted through his thoughts, of course.

The alarms, as loud and obnoxious as they were, made Cloud stumble through a slightly misshapen morning routine that consisted of him getting dressed and taking care of his hygiene, before going to breakfast in the designated eatery. It was then that Cloud finally, _finally_ noticed something was off.

In fact, almost as soon as he had some food in him he noticed how bizarre his situation actually was. Thoughts like 'ShinRa?' and 'What the fuck and who the fuck?' and also a much more common thoughts of defeat and acceptance. He remembered Aerith and Zack, the lifestream and that _damned fucking phoenix_.

So really, he knew this would happen—or rather, something a lot like it. He and Zack (who was nowhere to be found) had known they would be going to the past; just not how far. It seemed, however, that the planet and chosen quite the nice location of 'when', all things considered.

In fact, this was probably the most logical time to be sent back to. Sephiroth was alive and_ sane_, Aerith was alive, heck,_ everyone_ was alive! At least this way they wouldn't have to do as much fighting or work, and Zack knew Sephiroth well enough to know what was good for him and what wasn't.

Thinking of his travelling companion, he shoved the rest of his breakfast away and got up with the rest of whoever was around. It seemed like their first lesson was about to get underway, and suddenly Cloud felt glad that he'd retained his past self's memories in the transfer process. Otherwise, he probably would have no clue where he was going or who anyone's names were.

But, well, where was Zack? Cloud assumed Zack would get back into his old body, if his own transfer was anything to go by—but why hadn't he sought Cloud out yet? He'd almost expected that would be the first course of action for his dark-haired friend.

It appeared not, however. Probably because Zack was being held up by his own work as a SOLDIER, or he was just too absorbed with fawning over past friends that were still alive.

So, Cloud figured he'd be found on his own time. They had a while, anyway. For now, Cloud decided he would focus a bit more on his classes and actually _try_ to pass the SOLDIER exam this time. Obviously, last time he'd failed and gone to the infantrymen, where he promptly had been sent on the Nibelheim mission after about six months. That means, according to the calendar and any previously regained memories, that he and Zack had about a year to accomplish whatever it was they were supposed to do. Cloud figured their mission had to do with Sephiroth; saving the planet and all that.

Because the planet had sent them back to save it, and it seemed Jenova and Sephiroth had been the core of most of the problems. ShinRa, as well. They'd probably go on a few Reactor Destroying missions in the future just to slow down any environmental damage that was being done.

Hopefully by then they'd have Sephiroth on their side. Everything would be so much easier that way.

Cloud was quickly pulled back to class when his instructor asked him something about something and the influence of something on animals. Cloud had no idea, so he miserably shook his head in answer and some other trainee was called on to answer. Of course, that same person shot a smug smile Cloud's way as they answered the question correctly. Apparently, mako's reaction to animals was to make them monsters, and drawing from that answer, Cloud assumed that a lot of monsters were ShinRa's fault. Vaguely, he remembered his mother, sometime when he was young, muttering about the increase of Dorky Faces around the mountain passes.

And with that, classes continued to pass relatively smoothly—that is, until a certain Third Class burst through one of his classroom doors, accompanied by a much more muscular First. Cloud recognized Zack in an instant, but wondered who the First was. The instructor wasn't around for this class yet (battle tactics), and Cloud suddenly felt that maybe _these_ two were their teachers.

He sat straighter in his chair as familiar eyes swept over the crowd of potential SOLDIER, and when those eyes landed on him, Cloud saw no recognition. It was odd, seeing those bright blue eyes pass over him like they did any other student. Hadn't Zack made it back with him? Had something gone wrong?

Apparently so, because for the next hour of his time, Zack and the newly introduced Angeal Hewley stood in front of his class discussing the best battle tactics and infiltration formations, and not once did Zack's eyes stray to him—instead, they had been locked solely on Angeal, as if he were learning something as well.

It was off putting, but Cloud knew better than to out himself in front of half his peers. It would make him look foolish, and the best he could do was wait to see if anything would change. If they didn't in the next few days... well, then they'd have a problem.

(Not that he didn't think they already had a problem—in fact, he was feeling panic at the edges of his awareness. There was no way he'd be able to do anything on his own!)

When everything was all and done and Cloud had some free time, he decided to take a little stroll around to remind him of where everything was. He located vending machines, washrooms (that were separate from the ones attached to their dorms), a workout room, and a pool. Honestly, the only think Cloud hadn't recalled existing was the pool room, and since no one seemed to be in there it was likely that it was abandoned. There was no other explanation for an empty pool. Cloud made a note in the back of his mind to start swimming, if only to up his stamina and muscle.

At this rate, and according to his thin arms, he'd have to up his training quite a bit to even be acknowledged as a future SOLDIER. As it were, he really was nothing but a hopeful wannabe. The change he would have to go through was drastic if he wanted to pass.

Subsequently, the little walk around also served to jog whatever memory he'd gained from his smaller self. He recalled all of his dormmates names and faces, who'd bullied him and who'd been nice, and who he needed to stay away from lest some irreversible injury befall him. He also remembered that down here, they only had one elevator leading to the ground floor up to the SOLDIER Director's office. The man's name was Lazard or something, if he recalled correctly.

Cloud's attention was brought back to himself when he carelessly bumped into someone. Really, he needed to stop being so... reminiscing about things long past or the memories that were now floating about in his mind. Bumping into people just wasn't something Cloud Strife did.

He ended up sighing quietly before straightening up and seeing who he'd collided with. It turned out that it was none other than one of the SOLDIER Firsts: Angeal Hewley. What he was doing on the Trainee floor, well, he didn't know.

It barely registered that he should maybe salute and apologize to the large man—so he did. "Sorry, Sir! I wasn't paying attention." Cloud didn't know if it was a bit of his pre-Hojo personality was showing through or if it was from shock, but since he'd appeared in the lifestream he'd noticed he'd been a lot more talkative than before. It almost made Cloud uncomfortable with himself.

"At ease. It's fine; just watch where you're going next time. You'll never know when the person you bump into is carrying something important or not, all right?" Angeal was a surprisingly nice individual, and Cloud was grateful. He could've ended up with some sort of punishment.

"Thank you, Sir. Sorry again." And with a nod from Angeal, Cloud was on his way again, this time more careful about who was around. After that moment, he couldn't help but wonder once more about Angeal's presence on the trainee floor, and whether or not he had been waiting for someone. He _had_ just been standing there, after all. Was there a guard shift that he'd never known about or something? It seemed kind of silly that a First would be burdened with that.

Cloud, however, wasn't interested in being approached by anyone in the mostly empty halls again, and decided to go back to his bed and maybe study his text books some. He didn't have the location or the space to start his physical training yet, and besides, they had sword and gun training tomorrow, along with running, if his memory served to be correct. It seemed every other day they would do actual training; the other days all consisted of either classes or time off (Sunday). Knowing that, he allowed himself to relax a bit once he found his way back.

A quick look through his belongings found him in a state of surprise. While he had several books and a fair amount of clothes, one thing surprised him. A stray materia was buried in the bottom corner of his trunk, and he quickly picked it up to examine it. It looked like a Comet, and Cloud marvelled at the fact that he'd had this materia for so long. He remembered how it'd been so useful back in the future.

He sighed; now of all times, a bout of emotions just _had_ to hit. Although it wasn't his choice, or even his fault, Cloud blamed himself for getting killed and then sent back. He felt guilty for having to leave Tifa and the kids with no explanations. Surely they would worry for _years_ before presuming he'd run away for good. They wouldn't think he'd be dead; he was too strong.

Though, a new thought entered his mind, what if... they didn't exist? Sure, they existed in Cloud's past future, but now he had a _new _future, one he wasn't keen on messing up enough to make it turn out like his previous one. He didn't have to associate with anyone he didn't want to, and hopefully he could change so much as to not have to go on the Nibelheim mission. Maybe by then Hojo would be dead. Hopefully.

Cloud told himself to shake it off and accept that he would probably never see those exact people again. Sure, they still existed in the timeline he'd been put in, but they wouldn't have the same experiences, and due to that, probably not the same attitudes either.

He put the materia away (it was probably illegal to have anyway) and picked up a book that looked relatively interesting. It was called '1001 Monsters and Where to Find Them'. Flipping through it a bit, he also noticed that it listed common behaviours of the monsters, strengths and weaknesses, and also, of course, locations. It was a smart book to have, and if Cloud came across a monster that he was familiar with he could add notes on it, just in case he forgot in the future.

Taking the book to read, he lounged on his bed, forgetting his earlier worries and feelings to instead work at making little notes in the margins of book. Cloud was so focused that he didn't even notice the presence behind him, and he was completely unprepared for the following, almost whispery, voice.

"Hey Cloud! Cloudy, Cloud, Cloud Cloud! Guess who _has_ arrived?"

Cloud jumped, almost falling off his bed. Turning around swiftly, he gazed at the odd apparition before him while his heart and mind calmed down.

"Zack?!"


End file.
